


Among The Free (Sequel to Of The Captive)

by h31r_0f_br34th



Series: Of Living Nightmares [2]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: Family, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Pregnancy, Trans Character, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-16
Updated: 2017-06-27
Packaged: 2018-05-07 03:14:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 12,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5441402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/h31r_0f_br34th/pseuds/h31r_0f_br34th
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is the sequel to Of The Captive</p><p> </p><p>So here Jake is.</p><p>Dirk is in jail and the three boys are safe and sound.</p><p>Jake still has a huge decision to make though.</p><p>Will he keep the baby?</p><p>Not to mention, Dirk is planning to break out of jail.</p><p>Can no one just get some peace?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Are you going to keep it?"

Jake shakily let out a breath. He played with his hands as silent tears started streaming down his face.

"I-I..."

Jake reached down and shakily set a hand on his stomach. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine himself with a baby bump. Jake had to admit, the thought of having a child made him excited and happy.

Jake slowly opened his eyes and looked to Jenny

"I want to keep it..."

Jenny smiled gently and nodded before getting up "I wish we could could check on the child, but we won't know that much from looking at an ultrasound"

Jake nodded slightly and relaxed some. Jenny tucked Jake into bed "Get some sleep. I heard the doctors saying you should be discharged tomorrow as long as you don't get sick. "

Jake nodded once more and curled up on his side. He silently listened to Jenny leave the room, flicking the lights off on her way out.

The small boy yawned and slowly fell asleep.

 

~~~~~~~~

 

John shifted around in his bed, hes hurt all over from where the doctors put in new stitches and cleaned his wounds.

The raven haired boy sat up and looked over at Dave.

John swallowed hard. He needed Dave. He couldn't sleep unless he was with Dave.

Being with Jake would be nice too...

Although...

Jake may hate them for having gotten him into this mess to begin with...

John looked down at the IV in his arm. He would be okay without it... Right? Right?!

The small boy cringed as he reached down and pulled the IV out of his arm. He quickly got up and went over to Dave.

John bit his lip before climbing into bed with Dave. He moved Dave's arms so he could curl up in his arms, careful of Dave's own IV.

Dave murmured something before slowly opening his eyes "John..?" he asked groggily.

John bit his lip "I didn't want to sleep alone..."

Dave let out a soft 'awwwe' and hugged John gently "You can sleep with me, it's okay"

John looked up at Dave and giggled quietly when he started covering his face with kisses. "You're so cute..." the blonde murmured.

John blushed and hid in Dave's chest. The bigger boy silently rubbed John's back and closed his eyes.

John smiled when he heard Dave's soft snores start back up. John hugged him a little tighter before falling asleep himself.

 

________________

 

The next morning, John woke up to a nurse shaking him "Come on, John. You need to get your IV back on. You don't look well."

John whimpered and held Dave tighter, not wanting to leave him. The nurse noticed and she thought for a moment "What if we put your beds together?"

John was quiet a moment before nodding slowly.

The nurse smiled and straightened up "As soon as Dave is awake, we can do just that."

John quietly got up and got back in bed, watching her put the IV back in.

Dave sighed and sat up "I'm awake"

John snorted softly and watched the nurse help him up before calling in some other nurses to help get them settled.

Dave climbed in bed once the nurses were done.

John shuffled over and curled up with Dave. He closed his eyes, feeling safe and happy.

 

~~~~~~~~~~

 

Jake was awoken when one of the doctors came in and started checking him over. Jake sighed, really just wanting to sleep.

He sat up, noticing that the doctor was talking. It was weird... It was like Jake could hear the doctor talking but he couldn't at the same time.

Jake rubbed the back of his neck "It's too early for conversations" he mumbled to the doctor.

The male laughed and nodded "Alright-alright. Your breakfast will be here soon.

Jake nodded and rubbed his eyes. The doctor slipped out of the room, leaving Jake alone with his thoughts.

The small boy laid back down, placing his hands on his lower stomach, trying to imagine what the child may look like. He smiled at the thought of a little blonde hair, green eyed girl or boy.

Jake let out a slow breath and opened his eyes when he heard the door to his room open. The nurse smiled as she walked in "Good morning"

Jake bowed his head while she set down his breakfast on the movable table. She shifted it so it was in front of Jake. The nurse then picked up a remote and set Jake's bed into a sitting position.

"Have a lovely breakfast" she said softly before setting down the remote and leaving the room.

Jake looked down at his toast and eggs. He picked up his fork and quietly started eating his breakfast.

The Brit paused when he realized that he didn't really have anywhere to live. The apartment he was renting out was probably closed on him. He was supposed to have paid his rent the day that he went missing.

Jake swallowed hard, trying to push down his worry. He reached over and picked up the TV remote, wanting to try and drown out his thoughts.

The first thing to come on was the news. Since Jake had been gone for a while, he decided to see what was going on in the world.

Jake looked away from the TV to look out the window. It was sunny out and there were birds flying past his window. Jake smiled and leaned his head back. He closed his eyes and sighed happily. Things were going good.

"We're here today at the courthouse where 25 year old Dirk Strider will be tried later today"

Jake squeezed his eyes shut. Really? Couldn't he get a break from this?

The boy slowly turned his attention to television where the obviously new reporter was nervously speaking into his microphone

"Mr. Strider was found having kidnapped his own 16 year old little brother, Dave Strider, and missing 15 year old, John Egbert. With them was 24 year old, Jake English who is Dirk Strider's ex boyfriend"

Jake looked away, feeling sick to his stomach. How did they even get all this information...?

He let out a slow breath. "Dirk strider has chosen to plead psychotic. More on this story tonight."

Jake groped around for the remote and turned off the TV, not wanting to wait and see if the newscasters had anything to say about it.

Jake pushed his breakfast to the side and quickly went to the bathroom, getting sick into the sink.

Once his stomach was empty and he was finally feeling a little better, he rinsed the sink and cleaned out his mouth.

Jake slipped out of the bathroom and to his room where he curled up in bed and fell asleep once again.

 

Man Jake hoped it wouldn't be this way for long.


	2. Chapter 2

Jake was awoken by one of the doctor's nudging him awake. He smiled softly at Jake "Good afternoon, Jake. How you feeling?"

The small boy shrugged "Okay..."

The doctor rubbed Jake's shoulder "If you're ready, just come out to the front desk and we'll discharge you." he pointed to a chair in the corner "John's father went and talked to your landlord. Unfortunately, he already rented your apartment out and put your things in a storage facility. He went and got you some clothes and money from it. The key for the locker is there too."

Jake blinked in surprise "Wow... He didn't have to do that..." The doctor smiled softly but didn't say anything, turning and leaving the room.

Jake slowly got up and went over to his clothes, smiling when he realized that John's dad grabbed a binder for him.

Jake carefully slipped out of his hospital clothes. he took off his boxers before slipping on the clean pair.

Jake glanced down at his stomach, smiling at the tiny bump that was starting to form. He rubbed it lovingly before picking up his binder and slipping it on.

He quickly put on his jeans, shirt, socks, and shoes. He then slipped his cash and key into his pockets.

Jake took a deep breath before heading out of his room and towards the front desk.

The receptionist looked up when she noticed Jake "How may I help you?"

Jake played with his hands some "My name's Jake English" He said quietly. The receptionist started shuffling through his files before pulling out Jake's. He opened it up and started skimming through the papers "It looks like you need to get an appointment set up for your baby"

Jake blushed slightly and nodded. The male set down Jake's file and turned to his computer "You need one in about a month. When are you free?" Jake shrugged slightly "Any day works"

He sighed and chose a day with not many appointments "September tenth at ten o'clock?" Jake nodded "That works"

He typed it in before getting an appointment card and wrote down the date "You won't go to this hospital. The address is written on the card"

Jake nodded and took it from him "Thank you" The receptionist gave him a small nod. Jake was about to walk away when he paused "Where is John Egbert and Dave Strider's room?"

The man behind the desk sighed and started shuffling through his files again "room 304"

Jake thanked him again before heading in that direction.

 

~~~~~~~~~

 

Dave looked down at the tiny boy in his arms. How was he so lucky to have John as his boyfriend...?

Dave smiled and brushed John's unruly black hair out of his face. He smiled even more and kissed his head "God I love you so much..." he murmured

John shifted slightly and hugged Dave tightly before slowly waking up. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at the blonde boy. John smiled, leaning up and kissing him gently on the lips.

Dave smiled into the kiss and shifted so that he was slightly on top of John. He deepened the kiss, sucking and nibbling lightly on his lower lip.

John groaned under his breath and wrapped his arms around Dave's neck, pulling him closer.

Dave set a hand on John's hip and rubbed it gently. He slowly pulled away and smiled at John.

John smiled back, letting Dave lean down and bump noses with him "I love you" Dave murmured again.

John sighed happily "I love you too."

The smaller boy startled when there was a knock on the door, snuggling closer to Dave for safety. Dave rubbed his back and lifted his head "Come in"

Jake opened the door and slipped into the room. He smiled softly at the two boys curled up together. Jake walked over and sat down on the edge of their bed.

John lowered his head and hid more in Dave's chest, still feeling like Jake hated him.

Jake cocked his head and gently rubbed John's back "Hey, John. You feeling okay? What's wrong? Should i go get a doctor?"

Dave silently watched, he had a feeling he knew what was going on but decided not to say anything.

John slowly shook his head and looked up at Jake "Are... are you mad at me...?"

Jake frowned and brushed the hair out of John's eyes "No, John. Of course not! Why would you think that?"

John couldn't help that he started tearing up, he felt like a total baby but the tears just came. They started streaming down his face, making him hide his face in his hands "I-I... It's my fault that you had to go through that..."

Jake cocked his head "It's not your fault, John. Don't blame yourself. I didn't have to walk into Dirk's house. It was totally my decision." He leaned forward and hugged John, pressing his face to his chest. Dave sat up and wrapped his arms around both of them.

John sniffled and slowly relaxed into Jake and Dave. He smiled, feeling extra safe between the two larger boys who he knew now loved and cared for him.

Dave shifted slightly and tugged them down to cuddle. Jake happily obliged, joining their cuddle fest.

John sighed happily and opened his eyes. He looked up at Jake and kissed his jaw. Jake smiled and kissed his head "I have some news..." he said quietly.

Dave and John looked over at Jake.

Jake took in a deep breath "We-well... I'm pregnant..."

Dave raised his eyebrows before smiling "Congrats! Wow... I'll be an uncle"

Jake blushed and smiled "Yup"

John pulled away slightly so she could clap excitedly "I love babies"

Jake chuckled and ruffled his hair while Dave blushed and lowered his head, thinking about what it may be like to have a child with John. He smiled slightly and hid in John's upper back.

John giggled and looked back at Dave "Whatcha doing there?"

Dave blushed a bit more and shook his head "Nothing"

Jake smiled knowingly and ran a hand through Dave's hair.

 

Jake really hoped that John and Dave would get their version of paradise.


	3. Chapter 3

A few days later, the three boys were staying at John's house. The boy's father took Dave in and offered Jake a chance to stay at his house.

Jake ended up accepting begrudgingly. He hadn't wanted to accept because he felt like he would be a burden but the older male insisted. So, Jake accepted his offer so he didn't seem ungrateful.

Jake had somehow managed to stay away from any source that may or may not be talking about Dirk's trial. He had already been informed that the three boys were going to have to go and testify at Dirk's trial (Which scared him half to death) but he was told that he would be safe and nothing would happen. They had already said that "There was no possible way Dirk was going to walk free"

Jake sighed and curled up in his bed, absentmindedly rubbing his abdomen. He had formed a small baby bump that was just barely noticeable, So small in fact it kinda just looked like he just gained a little weight.

Jake opened his eyes when he heard the door open a little. John poked his head in "Can I come in?" he asked quietly. Jake nodded and shuffled over on his bed. John slipped in, closing the door behind him. He walked over and laid down next to Jake "Your phone was ringing" He held up the smartphone in it's dark green case.

Jake frowned and took the phone from him. John's now empty hand moved down and laid on Jake's abdomen. Jake smiled warmly and unlocked his phone before going to his voicemail.

John quietly rubbed Jake's abdomen with a gentle smile. He leaned down and kissed it while Jake lifted his phone to his ear. He stroked John's hair while he listened to the message. He sighed and turned off his phone once it was over "We're needed for court on Monday"

John bit his lip nervously and sighed "Okay..." John shifted so he was hugging Jake.

The older boy rubbed John's back and kissed his head "It's okay. You'll do good."

John didn't say anything, he just snuggled into Jake. The truth was, John wasn't worried about if he would do good. He wasn't even worried about having to testify. He was worried about Jake. He didn't want the older boy to have to go through this. He already had to tell their lawyer that he was pregnant and John knew how uncomfortable Jake was with the pregnancy. Of course he was happy. John knew that Jake already loved this child with all of his heart and beyond but he also knew that Jake didn't like feeling so much like a woman, especially since the idea of having a baby wasn't entirely his.

Jake sighed softly and closed his eyes again, leaning into John some. He enjoyed having the warm company of the younger boy. Not to mention he often gave off a happy aura that oftentimes made Jake feel just as happy.

Jake lifted his head and opened his eyes when he heard a soft knock "Come in" He said softly. The door opened and Dave stepped into the room. He smiled softly at his small boyfriend "It seems that you have stolen something from me" He gave a nod towards John. A wide smile spread across John's face along with a light blush. Jake chuckled "Why don't you come join us?" Dave smiled "I'd love to"

He walked over and climbed in bed with them, sandwiching John between himself and Jake, nuzzling into John's hair.

Jake absentmindedly noticed that Dave wasn't wearing his sunglasses and that he hadn't for the past couple of weeks. In fact, Jake was pretty sure he hadn't worn them at all since they had gotten out of that hellhole.

Jake smiled when he finally pieced everything together. The day after they had gotten home, Dave had gotten upset with John and kept asking him "Where did you put them?" John must have stolen Dave's glasses. Over the course of the next few weeks, John kept commenting on how pretty Dave's eyes were and how perfect he looked with them.

It was quite adorable to say the least. Every single time Dave would get flustered and would blush darkly. At first Dave would mumble out objections but he slowly started to just thank John. It was nice to see the transformation from being self conscious to confident about his features.

Dave quietly hugged John around the waist and sighed happily. Jake let out a slow breath and sighed "I hate to break up this happy moment but you need to know, We go to court in two days"

Dave stiffened and held John tighter "No." He growled out "I'm not going. And John isn't either. Neither are you." he lifted his head and looked to Jake, challenging him to go against his wishes.

Jake sighed as John squirmed slightly "We have to, Dave" he said quietly "If we don't then your brother... He could walk free and then what? What if he kidnaps us again or something?"

Dave slowly started to relax and sighed "Fine. I'll do it... I guess..."

John shifted so he could hug him, pecking him on the lips "You have to tell them everything though, Dave. Everything that he did before he kidnapped me"

Dave went silent before growling and burying his face in John's chest. John stroked his hair, trying to calm him

"It will be okay..."


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's get this straight. I've never really watched any sort of court case so this is in no way going to be perfect

Two days later, the boys were getting ready for the long day. John and Jake were getting dressed up in ties and button ups but Dave refused to get dressed in nicer close. Jake and John eventually gave up and finally decided to just let Dave get away with wearing his skinny jeans, converse, and his favorite shirt.

Jake herded John and Dave to his car and let them into it. He got into the driver's seat and started the car while the boys got on their seat-belts.

Jake plugged the address into his GPS before heading on their way.

~~~~~~~~

Once they got to the courthouse, the three boys started to head up towards the entrance, trying to ignore the news reporters trying to ask them questions. Jake shot glares at them and nudged the boys in front of him as they walked. Soon the they were sitting in the crowd of on lookers. the door to the courtroom opened and the judge, the jury, and the lawyers looked up and watched the police lead in Dirk. He wasn't in his orange jumpsuit like Jake had been expecting, instead they had dressed him up and trimmed his unruly blonde hair. Dirk huffed and watched them unlock his handcuffs "One wrong move and they go back on." one of the men warned before the two large males left and stood by the doors.

The judge cleared his throat and announced the charges that Dirk was being held for. He turned to Dirk's lawyer "What are you pleading?" The lawyer straightened up "we're pleading psychotic."

The judge sighed and nodded "You have the floor"

Jake bit his lip, feeling like the judge wasn't very serious about all this.

Dirk's lawyer got up "My client has admitted to many things but he says that none of it was intended to hurt these boys."

"bullcrap." Dave growled out. John set a gentle hand on Dave's knee and shushed him

"I would like my client to come up first." Dirk shuffled his feet before getting up and going over to the stand. He looked to the male standing in front of him. The larger male was holding out a bible for him to say his small speech. "Mr. Strider. Put your hand on the bible." Dirk's fiery orange eyes looked up at him. "I'm not religious. Why would I swear on a book that means nothing to me?"

Dirk's lawyer cleared his throat while the bailiff raised an eyebrow. Dirk rolled his eyes and set his hand on the bible in front of him

"Do you solemnly swear that you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

Dirk sighed and nodded "Yeah"

The bailiff shook his head and walked away while Dirk climbed up onto the stand. Dirk's lawyer walked over and stood in front of Dirk "Do you admit to the kidnapping of Jake English, Dave Strider, and John Egbert?"

Dirk's eyes drifted over the people in the crowd before they settled on Jake "Yes." He mumbled while he examined Jake. He looked different...

Jake shifted uncomfortably and looked away.

Dirk's lawyer nodded "Why did you do such, Dirk?"

Dirk looked down into the lawyer's eyes with a haunting look in his eyes. He turned and looked at the Jury with the same look. "Because I wanted to and I get what I want."

A soft murmuring rose up from the jury and the crowd. Judge Carter frowned and tapped on his desk, drawing attention to himself "Are you done with Mr. Strider yet?"

The lawyer nodded and went to sit down. Judge Carter turned his attention to the boys' lawyer "Do you have any questions for Dirk Strider?"

He shook his head. "I'd like to call Jake English up" Dirk swallowed hard and got up before heading down to his spot by his lawyer. he settled down and watched Jake walk up. Had he gained weight...?

Jake quietly said his oath of truth before going up and sitting next to the judge. Their lawyer leaned against the his table "Please list for the jury what Dirk Strider did to you and what you witnessed that he did. Start from the beginning"

Jake cleared his throat "I didn't see much... I wasn't with them for that long. It all started when I went to check up on Dirk. We had split up a few months before but we split as still friends. I was worried about him because I hadn't heard from him in a little while. I let myself into his apartment when no one answered and I started looking around some, looking for any sign he was living there-"

"Tell us the condition of the house Mr. English"

Jake let out a soft breath "It was a wreck. Beer bottles everywhere, dirty dishes, the trash hadn't been taken out in quite a while, there had been some old, rotting food sitting out on the counter."

The lawyer nodded "We would love to show you pictures but the house had been cleaned, correct?" Jake nodded slightly "We had cleaned a few days prior"

The lawyer bowed his head "We, Mr. English?"

Jake scowled "John, Dave, and I"

The lawyer nodded and looked to him "Continue."

Jake sighed and leaned back in his chair "I was looking around in Dave's room because I wanted to know if he had been around lately as well. I didn't look much though because I heard screaming. I left the room and went out to the hallway and there was this door... It hadn't been there before, or at least I hadn't noticed it because it had been hidden behind a wall."

Jake glanced over at Dirk before looking to the jury "I went and listened by the door and once again heard screaming and pleading. I was about to leave and call the police but I tripped on a beer bottle and fell. Dirk must have heard because the next thing I knew, the door was open and the lights went out. I had picked myself up by then but then I felt someone behind me. He whispered something in my ear but I don't remember what it was. He then put me into a drug induced sleep."

Jake sat up a little straighter "When I woke up, I was chained up in the room with John and Dave. They didn't look good at all. They had both lost a ton of weight, they smelt horrible since they hadn't showered in a while, and they had lots of scars and stitches and wounds."

Their lawyer straitened up and pressed a button on his remote. Pictures appeared on a screen. The pictures where ones the doctors had taken before fixing up the boys.

John hid in Dave's shoulder, not wanting to see them again. Dirk lifted his head with a disgusting sense of pride. Jake swallowed hard and played with his hands "I talked a little with John and Dave but it was nothing of importance. The door opened and dirk came in. He dragged me out of the room, down the hall and to his room. He shoved me onto the floor and I got hurt on some glass from a broken bottle. He took me and cleaned me up, very roughly at that but he cleaned the wounds. He then forced me over to his bed where he handcuffed me to the bed and..."

Jake trailed off and closed his eyes, needing a small break.

"And?" the lawyer prompted.

"And he raped me." Jake said quietly. Murmuring arose from the crowd while Dirk just leaned forward slightly. Once the murmuring died down some, Jake closed his eyes and tried to relax "I'm a transgender male. So he had the possibility of getting me pregnant."

There was some more murmuring as Jake shakily ran a hand through his hair. He slowly looked over at Dirk "And just that happened."

Dirk shot to his feet, wanting to go over to Jake. He wanted to hug him or kiss him or just show the boy he loved him and that he cared but at the same time he wanted to hurt Jake. How dare he tell that stupid woman about what had happened? Now everything was ruined. That baby Jake was carrying is his. Not anyone else's and now he may not even be able to ever see the child.

Suddenly there were officers next to him, handcuffing him while he struggled "No! Let go!"

Jake quickly looked away and tried his best to hold back the tears that were gathering.

The judge noticed and looked over at the officers "Take him out and let him cool down. Let's go on lunch. Come back in one hour."

Jake tried to swallow the lump in his throat as he listened to Dirk yell as he was dragged out of the courtroom.

He waited a few moments before looking up. John and Dave were waiting for him. They were the only ones left in the courtroom.

John gave Jake a comforting smile and waved for him to join them.

Jake rubbed at his eyes as a small whimper escaped him.

Dave frowned and got up, walking over to Jake and helping him to get up. He wrapped his arms around Jake and rubbed his back "Shhh..." He murmured.

John walked over and wrapped his arms around Jake as well

"It's okay, Jake..."

"We'll be okay..."


	5. Chapter 5

Turns out that the hour lunch break was needed. By the time it was almost time to go back into the courtroom, Dirk was still pretty wound up.

The police gave up and finally approached Jake "How would you feel about talking to him?"

Jake swallowed hard and looked over the woman's shoulder at Dirk. He let out a soft sigh and nodded "Will I be safe?"

The officer nodded "Of course"

Jake shakily stood up and followed the officer over. Suddenly, Dave and John were flanking Jake and when they were finally in front of Dirk, the two boys were standing in front of Jake slightly to keep him safe.

Dirk raised an eyebrow at them, his eyes hardening especially when he looked at Dave but then his eyes met Jake's and they immediately softened "So you're pregnant?" he asked, trying to make his voice sound as loving as possible.

Jake swallowed down the lump in his throat, not really liking his tone "Yes..." Jake said quietly, sliding a hand down to rest on his small baby bump "My first ultrasound is next week..."

Dirk's face lit up like a small child's "It's mine?"

Jake bit his lip and nodded "I was a virgin before you... And I haven't done anything like that since then..."

Dirk sat up straight, thrilled that the child really was his "You'll let me see it, right?"

Jake frowned and moved slightly closer to Dave, sliding his arm over his stomach so it was covering it protectively "Maybe..."

Dave frowned and wrapped a protective arm around the slightly shorter boy, attempting to help him relax a little. Jake leaned slightly into Dave while John shuffled closer to the two so that Jake was covered from both sides.

Dirk scowled "What do you mean, maybe? It's my child too!"

Jake looked away and hugged his stomach a little tighter "I will do what I think it best for the child. If i think that is letting you see it then I'll let you see it. If I think that's putting it up for adoption then I'll put it up for adoption." Jake's heart skipped a beat at the thought of putting the child- his child- up for adoption. He immediately realized he just couldn't let that happen. This baby was his and his alone. He wasn't going to leave it for another family and let the child wonder why it's parents didn't love it enough to keep it.

Dirk opened his mouth to say something but was cut off when the judge said that it was time to start again. The three boys shuffled back to their seats. The judge turned to Dirk's lawyer "Do you have any questions for Mr. English?"

The male nodded and got up. Jake sighed softly and got up from his seat, walking to the front of the room and got up on the seat.

Jake watched the man pace in front of him while he formulated his questions "You did not consent to having sex with Dirk Strider?"

Jake played with his hands in his lap, uncomfortable with the question "I did not" he said quietly.

The lawyer nodded and stopped in front of Jake "Did you clearly say that you did not want to have sex with him?"

Jake shifted "I told him I didn't want to many times"

Dirk scowled as his lawyer turned to him "Is this true?"

The blonde sighed and leaned back in his seat. He nodded slightly before staring up at Jake "I wanted a child. I wanted him pregnant so I ignored his wishes."

Jake shifted uncomfortably. The lawyer nodded slightly before looking to the judge "I'm done" he said simply before sitting down. The judge motioned Jake to head back to his seat before calling up Dave.

Dave got up and walked up to the stand, he mumbled out his statement of truth before settling down. their lawyer stood up and started pacing some "Dirk Strider is your legal guardian, correct?"

Dave nodded slightly and leaned back in his seat, glancing over at Dirk. The male was glaring into Dave's red eyes. The older male hated his brother's eyes. He wasn't sure why but he did.

Their lawyer stopped in front of Dave "What happened to your parents?"

Dave worried his lip before sighing "They left us. Nothing but a note saying that they didn't love us and they never would and they told us we had better not look for them"

A soft murmuring rose from the crowd. Dirk growled and straightened his back. "It's all your fault they left us! They liked me! They loved me! I was the reason they ever had you! But then you were born and they left us!"

Dave swallowed down the lump in his throat and looked down at his hands.

The lawyers and judge exchanged looks. The boys' lawyer sighed and looked to Dave "What has Dirk done to you, Dave?"

Dave let out a shaky sigh himself "Used me to pleasure himself, emotional abuse, physical abuse. He nearly brought me to killing myself... this has been going on for years but it got worse when he and Jake split up"

Jake looked down at the floor, feeling like some of this was his fault. John gently rubbed Jake's arm, trying to cheer him up. Jake gave a small smile and took John's hand in his.

Dave shifted and started explaining his side of the story, about how John had invited him over that fateful day and how his brother came and kidnapped him. He told how Dirk tortured the two of them and said how Jake saved John from nearly being killed by showing up the day he did. He said how Dirk knocked Jake out and chained him up in the torture room. He talked about how later Dirk came and took Jake but him and John had no clue what was happening because of the soundproof walls.

The judge turned to Dirk and asked if he denied any of this but Dirk just shook his head.

One of the members of the jury raised his hand and slowly stood up "I have been talking to the others and we have decided that we have heard enough"

The judge nodded "And what is your verdict?"

The male looked to the spiky haired male and squared his shoulders "Dirk Strider is guilty. He does not have a mental illness though"

The judge nodded and looked to Dirk before standing up "I sentence Dirk Strider to 75 years with a fine of 10 thousand dollars"

Dirk's eyes widened slightly "I don't have that much!"

The judge shook his head "You will have the opportunity to work towards your time and fine to go down but it will be a lot of work. Unless you want to spend the rest of your life in jail, I would start working Mr. Strider. Court dismissed."

Jake swallowed hard and watched Dirk being led out of the court to the cop car waiting outside where he would go to a level two prison.

Dave walked down the hall and joined the other boys "Come on. Lets go get dinner or something" Jake nodded slightly and slowly got up, following them out.

The three boys went into the large crowd that had gathered in the hallway.

Jake frowned when he realized that he couldn't see John or Dave. He was about to call for them when someone grabbed him by the back of the shirt and pulled him out of the crowd before pushing him up against the wall.

It was a woman who was a little taller than Jake. She had electric blue hair and she smelt heavily of perfume. Jake couldn't help but notice that he recognized her lipstick as she started to talk.

"You took my man from me." she hissed out. "I had him wrapped around my finger when you walked out of his life but then you decided to walk back in and you ruined everything! Everything! I wanted to be the one carrying his baby! I bet you don't even love it! If you loved them then you wouldn't have ratted him out!"

Jake let out tiny puffs of air and turned his head to the side. He felt like he couldn't breathe, like his lungs just refused to take in enough air. Who was this woman and why was she talking to him like this..?

Jake squirmed slightly "I do love them! I love them both so much and you have no idea how hard all of this is for me!" He swallowed down the lump forming in his throat. He didn't want to cry in front of this woman.

The woman growled and slammed Jake against the wall "Watch your back."

Once the ringing in his ears died down and he could see clearly, he realized that the woman had seemingly vanished and was no where in sight. He swallowed hard, not noticing Dave and John emerge out of the slowly thinning crowd "There you are! we were looking everywhere for you! what happened?"

Jake let out a slow breath and shook his head "Nothing. Let's go."

John and Dave exchanged looks before they took Jake's hands so they wouldn't get separated again.

Jake held tightly to their hands, nervously glancing around every once in a while.

Who was that woman, what did she want, and what was she planning...?


	6. Chapter 6

The next few weeks were... Strange (to say the least) for Jake and Dirk.

Let's start with Dirk:

 

Dirk's first few days at his new "home" was difficult, mostly consisting of other prisoners sizing him up and putting him in his place. This mostly consisted of fights where Dirk took the beatings until the guards pulled the other male (or occasionally woman) off of him.

Now Dirk would never normally accept this sort of treatment but his lawyer said how it was best for him to not participate in any sort of fighting if he wanted any chance of getting parole or even a visit from his kid (though, Dirk thought he was lying about that)

Dirk already knew he hated his "bunk mate". The male (who towered over everyone) was here for murder. Dirk didn't understand why but the giant of a man reminded him of a clown and Dirk was not a fan of clowns in the slightest.

Dirk's problems started when he woke up in the middle of the night and Gamzee (his cell mate) was standing over him with a homemade shank in his hand and a wicked look in his eyes and a strange eerie grin on his face.

Dirk remembered how the male had lifted his arm holding the makeshift knife and was about to bring it down to his chest but at the last moment, impaled it in his upper thigh instead. Dirk had cried out in pain while the male just laughed as he climbed back into bed. Leaving Dirk to have to decide between leaving the weapon in or taking it out.

In the end, Dirk took it out, huffing out breaths filled with raw pain. He'd never felt anything like it and he started wondering in the back of his mind if this was how Dave and John felt when he did similar things.

He used his blanket as a makeshift bandage when it was obvious that no guards were coming to his rescue. He tossed the bloodied knife across the room and listened to the metallic clatter as it slid across the floor. Gamzee huffed out an amused chuckle at the sound.

Dirk swallowed hard and shakily laid down in his bed, not getting any sleep the rest of the night in fear that Gamzee may repeat his earlier actions. 

In the morning, the guards came to retrieve them for breakfast. They saw Dirk and automatically assumed that he had done this to himself. They helped him to his feet and started walking him down to the medical ward.

the doctor didn't say anything while he stitched Dirk up, not giving him strong enough pain meds so it hurt almost just as much as it would without them.

Dirk bit his lip hard and squeezed his eyes shut. He was relieved when is was over. he quietly got up and followed the guards to mess hall, ignoring the feeling of his stitches pulling lightly as he walked.

Once he got to mess hall, he got in line to get food before sitting down by himself. He quietly started eating the bland chicken and rice while he glanced around.

The whole room gave off a school lunchroom vibe but there was a ton less talking going on.

Dirk sighed an leaned back in his chair, taking in the rest of the room. His leg hurt and he wanted the pain to just disappear. He felt like he was a hamster trapped in a overpopulated cage.

Dirk took in a deep breath when Gamzee took a seat beside Dirk, sliding a hand onto his knee. "Hey, man" he said in a gruff voice. "Why don't you and I get out of here?" The larger male smirked and winked at him.

Dirk made a face of distaste and pushed Gamzee's hand off of his leg "No." he paused before mumbling out a "Thank you."

Gamzee chuckled and got up "You'll change your mind, besides." He paused and waited until Dirk's full attention was on him. "I get what I want and that's what I want." he quoted, having heard from one of the other inmates that that was what Dirk had said in his trial.

Dirk sunk down in his seat as he watched the snickering male get up and leave again.

Dirk had to get out of here...

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Now let's turn to Jake.

 

Jake didn't have a great couple of weeks. People kept recognizing him from the recent court case (They lived in a small sleepy town so the fact that this happened in their town made it all the talk.)

They would give Jake looks of pity. Some would ask him questions about it and the rest of the people would just give Jake double-takes.

And let's not forget those people who only focused on the fact he was trans. He got a lot of hateful comments thrown his way about how he was not fit for raising a child and that he was only going to screw them up after all, he was obviously a screw up. A male who was born a female? Scandalous.

Somehow Jake was able to ignore the comments and just pressed on. Like planned, he went to his ultrasound the week after the trial. The nurse helping him told him that the baby was doing great despite how Jake had been treated the first month or so into pregnancy. She told him that it looked like he was around 3 months along, possibly a little less.

Jake looked down at his stomach with a loving smile. He was around four and a half months along now and his baby bump was a bit bigger. He unfortunately had to stop wearing his binder because of how tender his chest was but he was dealing with it.

Anyway, back to the last couple of weeks.

Jake had been on edge ever since the exchange with the woman outside of the courtroom. He wasn't sure if he was overthinking it or if it was really, truly the case but he felt like the woman was always there. There had been a few times when some accidents nearly happened too.

Jake really had been seeing the woman. He would look up and see her standing on a street corner or something but when he took a double take, she was gone. As for the accidents, they were weird. Like one day he was about to step out onto the street (after looking) and a car appeared and nearly hit him (He was absolutely certain no one had been there) and then when he was driving around he kept nearly getting into car accidents.

Things just weren't going well for Jake in that aspect of his life.

On the good news side though, Jake had somehow manged to score a job despite the fact he was pregnant. He was nearly certain no one would take him on but sure enough he was able to get two part time jobs.

Jake had quietly started to think about plans for when the baby came. He was nervous to start making any plans in case something happened and he lost the baby but John's dad had convinced him that it was okay to start planning and that it was probably even best to do so.

John's dad had even offered to take him and the boys to the children's store once Jake knew the gender so that he could start buying what he needed. It was when John's dad said this that he realized that there was a good chance he wasn't leaving their house and moving out anytime soon. especially when the older male told him to start picking out paint chips and hanging them in the office so they could start painting it.

Jake was grateful, don't get him wrong! But he still felt like he was a pest to the household and felt like he was getting in the way. But, just like when he first moved in, he begrudgingly agreed because he didn't want to seem ungrateful.

After all, that's what you do when you get kidnapped, stripped of your virginity and impregnated, lose your house and your job and all you're left with is your things in a storage locker and a child growing inside you.

Right?


	7. Chapter 7

Dirk was really starting to get what Jake felt like. 

The older Strider was currently staring at the marks that covered his body. Blue, black, purple, yellow, and green bruises covered his body along with scratch marks and bite marks. Not to mention he felt like absolute crap as well. 

Dirk took a deep breath before burying his face in his pillow. 

He hated his cell mate. 

Gamzee got exactly what he had wanted. It hurt and it didn't feel good at all. He hated it. He wanted to be home. He... 

He wanted to apologize to Jake... Jake went through all of this but... He didn't seem to hate him... Dirk bit his lip and let out a tiny sob. 

The male shook slightly as silent tears ran down his face. He wanted nothing more than to reverse his actions. He wanted to take back everything. Every single thing was Dirk's fault. It was his fault Jake broke up with him. It was his fault Dave's and his parents left. It was his fault Dave was so insecure. It was his fault all together. 

What did he have to do to reverse this...

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Dave looked around his new room that he shared with John. It made him happy to see his things among John's things. He smiled as he got up and walked over to one of the walls where he had pictures that he took hanging up. He ran his fingers over the photos of his new family. He took in a recent picture of John and Jake. John was beaming like the little sunshine child he was. And Jake... Jake looked so happy. He had an unmistakable glow to him.

Dave liked how Jake would light up when the baby shifted and how his hands would immediately go right to his stomach. The youngest Strider loved how his boyfriend would fall asleep with his head on Jake's stomach, calmed by the feeling of being close to the two of them. 

Dave sighed happily and ran his fingers over a picture of John and him. 

 

He loved this boy so much...

Dave looked up when he heard the door open. John was standing at the door with a small smile "whatcha up to?" He slowly walked over, examining the pictures hanging on the wall. "You look so happy, Dave" he murmured. Dave smiled slightly and blushed "Nothing much... I'm just looking at our pictures." 

 

Dave looked to John "And... I feel happy" He said quietly.

John smiled and reached up to set a gentle hand on Dave's jaw. He slowly leaned up and kissed him lightly on the lips. Once he pulled away, he looked up into his eyes "Did you want to go with Jake to his ultrasound?" 

 

Dave nodded quickly "I'll go get dressed" he pulled away and started looking through his clothes.

John laughed softly "Good. He'll find out the gender today and then we're going to go to the children's store"

Dave grinned as he started undressing, having no shame in being naked in front of John. (And no they didn't do the nasty if that's what your thinking) The two boys saw no point in being embarrassed about their bodies after everything they had been through. 

 

John walked over to his calendar and sighed softly "You and I start school again in two weeks..." John stared at the letters on the calendar that spelt out 'October'. He slowly turned and looked to Dave "We should also go back to school shopping too..."

Dave scowled and looked away "I don't want to." 

 

John shook his head "That's not a choice, Dave" he walked to the door and set his hand on the doorknob "I'm gonna go tell my dad we need to go school shopping. You finish getting ready" 

 

John slipped out of the room before Dave could say anything else. The small boy went down to the kitchen where his dad was cleaning up from breakfast and Jake was skimming through a textbook (he was currently working on getting an online degree in writing) 

 

John plopped down in a chair next to Jake "Dad?" The older male turned to look at him "Yeah?"

John straightened up and nodded to the calendar "We need to go school shopping" he said simply.

John's dad nodded slowly "Alright. We can go today" he said offhandedly.

John thanked him and fell silent, listening to the world around him. His mind suddenly wandered to Dirk. John start wondering how he was doing. Was he hating prison? Was he starting to realize how much he hurt the three of them?

 

Dave soon came plodding down the stairs. He looked at all of them before sitting down in one of the free kitchen chairs. "So..." He mumbled. 

 

"Sew buttons on your underwear" John's dad mumbled before wiping his hands off on a kitchen towel and walked off to his bedroom to get his shoes on and grab his wallet and keys. Dave made a face before looking at John.

 

Jake looked over at Dave and chuckled "So, what?" 

 

Dave shook his head quickly and reached over to set a hand on Jake's abdomen. Jake happily allowed him to do so, smiling when he felt the child gently pressed itself towards Dave's hand. "They like you, Dave" He murmured softly.

Dave smiled widely, looking up when John's dad walked back into the room "Come on, we don't want to be late"

The four boys walked out of the house and piled into the oldest male's car. Pretty soon they were on their way to the hospital. 

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Dirk glanced up when he heard Gamzee come into their cell. He swallowed hard and sunk down in his bed. He hoped that Gamzee was too tired to do anything to him. 

 

"Come on Strider. It's your turn to go shower." Dirk immediately got up, not wanting to spend another moment with the other male. He followed the officer out of the cell and down the hall to where the communal bathroom. 

 

He was soon undressed and in the shower, trying his best to ignore the other guys in the shower room with him.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

John's dad soon pulled up to the hospital and let the three boys out of his car at the front door "I'll go park the car. You three go ahead and get Jake signed in." 

 

John nodded and led Jake and Dave into the hospital. John and Dave went to take a seat while Jake went and got himself checked in. 

Jake sighed softly as he came and joined the two boys. Jake closed his eyes with a soft sigh, only to open them again when he heard someone sit down next to him. He turned his head, stiffening when he saw the woman from before looking back at him "I'm going to bail my darling out and I'm going to make sure he kills you and that..." She looked at Jake's abdomen distastefully "rat growing inside you" 

Jake protectively wrapped an arm protectively around his middle as he stared her down "what are you doing here?" He asked, an accusing sound in his voice. The woman just snickered as she stood up and slipped out of the waiting room. 

Jake let out a shaky breath, looking down at his trembling hands. The boy nearly jumped out of his chair when his name was called. Jake slowly got up and walked over to the nurse. Jake looked back at Dave and John who each gave him encouraging smiles, oblivious as to what just happened. 

Jake swallowed hard and slowly followed the nurse into his room. 

Before long, Jake was staring at the screen with his child projected on it. Jake was smiling as happy tears slid down his face. A baby girl... He was going to have a baby girl this time in a few months. Jake grinned as he listened to the heartbeat. The nurse smiled as she told him how well his baby was doing and how healthy she was. 

Jake was ecstatic when he got the picture from his ultrasound. 

Jake finished up before going out to John and Dave, happily showing them the picture. 

John grinned and bounced in his seat as he looked at the picture "so? Is it a boy or girl?" He asked excitedly. Jake grinned as he slid a hand to his stomach "A girl" he said quietly, smiling softly. 

Dave grinned softly as he looked down at the picture "I can't wait to meet her..." He said quietly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Dirk had to come up with a plan. He couldn't wait for his time to be up he had to see Jake now. 

Dirk sighed as he listened to the other inmates' ideas as to how to escape but they were all really stupid if he was being honest. He sighed as he looked around. Maybe he could get hurt enough that he'd have to be taken to the hospital. Then when he was at the hospital he could find some way to get out. The perfect plan. All he needed was some other prisoners to help him out.


	8. Chapter 8

Jake was on top of the world as he shopped for clothes for his little baby girl. 

He was going to protect her with his life and protect her for as long as he could.

As Jake was walking around trying to find what he wanted to buy, he started thinking about the fact he was going to have a baby soon. A baby! Jake couldn't help but inwardly squeal. He honestly never had really thought about having children until this was thrown upon him but Jake felt so happy just thinking about this... While Jake wouldn't want to go through all this again, He wouldn't change any of this. Well... maybe he'd change one or two things....

Dave and John seemed to really enjoy looking around the children's store and picking out clothes for the little baby. They really liked helping with all this, enjoying the idea of a new child in the family. This piece of information helped him so much because this whole situation would be so much more stressful if John and Dave weren't as okay with all this if we're being honest here.

 

The rest of the day went by weirdly smoothly despite the terrible encounter with the woman from the court room earlier. Now don't get me wrong, this was a great thing but it made Jake think about what had happened that morning and made him decide one thing, Jake had to figure out who this woman was. 

After going back to school shopping with his new family and after returning home, he told John's dad that he forgot something from the store and that he would just run out and get it.  This, of course, was just a cover up and from the look John's dad gave him, Jake could tell that he knew something was up but the older male didn't say anything. It wouldn't have mattered anyway.

Jake wasn't sure why he was being so secretive about this, he guessed it was because he didn't want anyone stopping him and telling him what he was doing was a bad idea. Yes, yes it was a bad idea but Jake couldn't hold back his curiosity anymore. He had to figure out who this woman was. 

 

 

It wasn't long before Jake found himself right outside Dirk's old house. Jake looked up at the door with a feeling of dread about what he would find inside and what he was going to find out.  Jake took a deep breath to try and ease his worries but this only helped a little. The small boy set a hand on his stomach as he started looking around for the spare key to the door. Jake had to admit, he wasn't expecting to find it but it was still there, buried in the dirt of a flower pot. He took the key and quietly unlocked the door, honestly not knowing what to expect. Jake took in a deep breath before slowly opening the door to the house. 

Jake froze.

No.

No.

The disgusting smell from that letter he was looking for, filled his senses making him feel sick to his stomach. Jake's eyes landed on a mess of blue hair attached to a woman who was sitting on the couch. Her whole demeanor was just... Wrong. Her shoulders were slumped and her head was tilted to the side like she was asleep and using her shoulder as a pillow. She stayed like this for only a moment before her head snapped up and she sat up straight, her whole body going rigid. Like... Like she was possessed or something similar.

 

Jake quickly took a step back, trying to leave before the woman noticed him but he was too late. She quickly turned her head to look at Jake, an eerie smile spreading across her face "Fiona~!" She purred out but somehow also exclaimed with happiness like she was a small child who was seeing their best friend for the first time in weeks.

 

Jake's eyes widened, how did she find out his birth name? He got it changed years ago! There was no way that this woman could have just looked somewhere and accidentally find it. She had to have known what she was looking for and intentionally found it.

"How good is it that you were able to find me~!" She got up and started walking towards Jake "Look at how much you've grown~!" Jake swallowed down a lump in his throat hearing her mumble something about how her baby looked as if it'd just pop out any week now. Jake quickly tried to leave but the small male was soon caught by the larger of the two.

"So~ I heard you've got a girlie~!" she giggled as she closed the door behind him and poked his stomach sharply, her fingernail jabbing into it. "Just look at you~! It looks like I could just pop you and your guts would go everywhere!"

Jake mumbled a small 'I'm not that big', trying not to throw up at the graphic image her words portrayed to him. Jake shifted uncomfortably as he tried to find some way to get out. "So!" She exclaimed "what are you doing here?" Jake bowed his head, willing himself to disappear. The woman in front of him growled and pulled him in by his collar "I asked you a question." She hissed, her whole attitude changing in seconds. 

 

Jake shuddered and whimpered, trying to get away from her "I-I..." He tried his best to move so his stomach was protected "I wanted to find out-out who you we-were..." He stuttered out, terrified about what was going to happen to him.

She growled and let go of his collar but not before shoving him into the wall, the air getting knocked out of him. She shook her head, looming over him "I'm so disappointed in you, Fiona. You should know better than to mess with me." She took a step forward, her hand finding it's way to the arm over Jake's belly "I hate you so much, Fiona. You have everything I want. Family, loved ones, my darling, good looks... and what do I get for all my good deeds? Nothing!" Her hand drew back before it rammed into Jake's stomach, the heel of her hand thrusting up right under where his arm was, causing the brunette immense pain. 

 

Jake let out a loud gasp as tears came to his eyes. The male slowly sunk down to the floor, His knees coming up to his chest and his arms wrapping around his middle to try and protect his little one from any further attacks.

The woman started drawing back her foot but suddenly decided against it and took a step back "Leave. Now. Don't you ever  dare to come looking for me again. You must learn, Fiona. I find you. You don't find me." 

 

She stared down at Jake, waiting for a response but when she got none, she just turned and disappeared further into the house. 

 

Jake gave himself a few moments to try and adjust to the pain and catch his breath. Once he was able to do so, he slowly got up and limped out of the house, not wanting to spend a second more in that nightmare inducing house.

He knew what he went to find out anyway.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

It didn't take long for Dirk to finish planning out his escape. All he needed now were the tools that he was pretty sure wouldn't take much to attain.

Dirk was only on his second month in this damn prison and had been put through hell to say the least. 

 

Someone had managed to figure out that his roommate was hurting Dirk so they moved him in with someone else but this dude was honestly worse than Gamzee. His name was Caliborn and he is the freakiest dude you'll have ever met.

"Did I tell you how I killed my sister?"

"Yes, Cal" Dirk sighed, not wanting to hear the gory details of how he chewed off his leg and murdered his twinki. Cal made a face and shook his head "I don't remember that." He mumbled simply as Dirk got up and started pacing the cell. 'Maybe you would remember if you didn't constantly steal and take other people's medicine.' Dirk thought to himself as he messed with his hands, trying to figure out what he needed to do.

 

Cal groaned as he watched him, disliking when Dirk started pacing because it made him anxious. "Dirkyyyy," he whined "Stop ittt!" Dirk ignored the male as he went to the cell door and peered out, willing for the time to pass so he could get out and start gathering the supplies he needed. 

Dirk sighed and hit his head against the cold, metal bars. Said bars made a clanking noise as his head hit it, making a red mark on dirk's forehead. 

 

The blonde lifted his eyes when a guard came to the door and looked at him for a few moments like he was trying to make a decision. The male slowly pulled out the keys from his pocket and unlocked the door "Come along, Strider. There's someone here to talk to you." He murmured, his voice sounding a little off. 

 

Dirk frowned as he looked back at Caliborn who was half asleep and staring at the far wall. Dirk took a deep breath before slowly looking to the guard again, placing his trust in him as Dirk took a step out of the cell.


	9. Chapter 9

The guard sighed as he started leading dirk down the hall, wishing he could just leave the male to rot in his cell. The guard had no idea how anyone could hurt their loved ones, especially the way Dirk had. Dirk had destroyed not only his family's lives but destroyed his relationship with them as well. What he did was wrong on so many levels and it made the guard so angry. 

"Here we are," the male snipped at dirk as they reached the visiting area for prisoners. Dirk looked up at the guard before walking over to the booth he pointed to. Dirk sat down, looking around at the other prisoners talking to others. Dirk turned his attention to the blue haired woman in front of him. 

"Vriska?" He asked in complete and utter surprise "I... what are you doing here?" Dirk looked Vriska over. She looked angry. 

"Oh Dirky!" She cried over-dramatically. "Oh I've missed you so much!" She shifted so she was leaning further over the counter, "I heard that wretched girl Fiona got you locked in here. You poor thing," she cooed, sticking out her bottom lip as she finished her sentence. 

Dirk growled lowly at her, "How dare you talk about Jake like that," he moved his face closer to the glass. "You have no right, Vriska. None at all." He snapped, hitting his fist against the counter. Vriska's eyes flickered to the side out of fear "I- no! No, you're wrong Dirk. The woman you're talking about is horrible. She locked you up in here after finding out about being pregnant with your baby! She's not even grateful, Dirk. Even if she is she's refusing to let you see the little one. Why are you protecting her?" She asked Dirk incredulously. 

"Because I love him, Vriska. And you- you just don't understand it." Dirk shook his head before getting up and leaving the booth before she could say another word. He headed back to his cell with the guard, his mind was reeling as he tried to figure out how he could get out but also worrying about Jake. How did Vriska know so much about him?

Vriska scowled as she watched dirk walk away, "You'll be mine soon, Dirk. Don't worry my little buttercup." Vriska smiled an unsettling smile before marching off to catch her bus back home. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jake barely made it home. He felt terrible. His stomach hurt and he had to keep checking himself to make sure he wasn't bleeding. Large tears were close to falling from his eyes as he dragged himself up the few stairs leading to his temporary home. Jake was fumbling with his keys to try and unlock the door when the Dave opened the door. He had heard Jake and decided to let him in. The blonde boy froze seeing the Brit trembling in front of him, tears close to falling down his cheeks and hunched over himself. 

"Jake?" Dave asked slowly as he reached out to help the boy into the house. He closed the door behind them before taking Jake to the living room and having him sit down. "What happened?" He questioned as he looked Jake over with his eyes.

Jake let a few tears fall as he felt the child inside him churn a little "I-I needed to find out..." he murmured 

"Find out what?" Dave questioned, reaching out to take his hand softly "what happened?" Dave asked as he frowned even deeper. Jake let out a small sob as he brought his hands up to cover his face.

"The woman who's been stalking me sine we left the wretched house..." He explained quietly. Dave's eyes widened and a confused look overtook his face. "Someone has been-" 

 

"Hey, Jake! What do you think, green or purple-" John froze and looked at the boy on the couch "Jake? What's wrong? Oh god were you hurt?" He quickly walked over and bowed down. He set his hands on Jake's stomach before lifting his shirt slightly to see the deep purple bruise. "O-oh god..." John mumbled. Jake squirmed and looked to the side. He swallowed hard before looking at John who was looking up at him with wide eyes "what happened? Who did this?" He asked. Dave set a hand on John's shoulder to silence him for a moment.  
"Who is stalking you?" He asked incredulously. Jake shifted as he tried and ease a heavy wave of pain.  
"Dirks-" he winced and took a deep breath "Dirks ex girlfriend. She-she and him used to do things together like steal and I had a sneaking suspicion-" he paused from another wave of pain "those two would go back and get revenge on people. Dirk thought-he thought he was doing something good. He was just mistaken." Dave's face turned sullen as he thought but it soon turned into one of worry as Jake groaned loudly. John's face twisted in anger.  
"Why can't they leave us alone?! I'm calling an ambulance and the police." Jake's eyes widened and he quickly shook his head   
"John, no! Please- please don't! It'll be worse if we call the police on her! Just... just say I fell, okay?" He pleaded with him. John frowned deeply as he looked at him for a moment. He bit his lip before turning and going to the phone. John looked over at Jake as he dialed 911.   
"Nine-one-one, what's your emergency?"  
"Hello, I need an ambulance and a police officer" 

\-----------------------------

Dirk was so proud of himself. He just won another round of cards. One more round and he would have enough cigarettes for the last tool he needed to start his escape plan. He looked across the way at his roommate who was trying to get someone to give him her medication. Dirk shook his head slightly and turned his head away. The blonde's attention was drawn to the guard from before. The man sat down at his table and laid out his cigarettes that he had gotten from who knows which prisoner.   
"What are you up to, Dirk Strider?" He asked him, eyeing the boy. Dirk rolled his eyes at him, feeling cocky.   
"Beat me at cards and I'll tell you." He growled to him. The guard nodded slowly and began to shuffle the cards. Dirk leaned back in his chair, feeling confident. He had beaten every other person so far so why wouldn't he beat him too? He took up his cards as they were felt to him and looked over his hand.   
"So, tell me about yourself, Dirk." The guard said, trying to distract him. Dirk looked up at him suspiciously before looking back at his cards   
"When I was five my father tried to run me over with his car and when that didn't work he ended up abandoning me on the side of the road." He said like it wasn't that big a deal. The guard looked at Dirk in shock for a moment before quickly looking down at his cards as they began to play.  
"That's terrible." He said softly. Dirk shrugged nonchalantly.  
"It's no big deal. I dealt with it. I lived." He shifted slightly in his chair, feeling uncomfortable. "I've got something to go after now." The guard looked up over his cards.   
"Oh? What's that?" He asked slowly, looking him over.   
"Jake and my baby." He said quietly as he put some cards down. "I want them."   
The guard gave an uneasy smile and fell silent, unsure if he wanted to dig deeper into this boy's story. The guard's question seemed to have the desired effect on Dirk though. He seemed distant throughout the card game. Dirk's eyes fluttered around, trying to take in everything he could about the man in front of him but looking at other things as well to try and not be obvious. The guard's name tag read Victor and he had silver hair that looked like it would normally cover part of his face but was pinned back, probably so people could see it better. Suddenly Victor's face lit up as he laid down the remaining cards from his hand.  
"I win." He said simply, looking dirk over. Dirk looked at the man in shock and slight anger. "Well?" Victor asked "what are you up to?" The guard started messing with a ring on his finger, obviously a bit nervous. Dirk's eyes were drawn to it before he looked up at him with narrowed eyes.  
"You first. Who are you?" The guard squared his shoulders and sat up straight.   
"My name is Victor and I'm married. His name doesn't matter to you but we've adopted two kids. I love them all with everything I have." He eyed Victor "I would never hurt them." Dirk sneered and rolled his eyes.   
"You know nothing about love." He said simply "I'm trying to break out and you-" Dirk reached out and grabbed Victor's cigarettes, "are going to do nothing about it." Victor growled before grabbing dirk by the collar.   
"You aren't going anywhere big boy." At this he turned towards some guards gathered close by. "Take this one's cigarettes and search his room. He's planning an escape." Dirk looked at them with fire in his eyes but didn't do anything. He'd get them back. Just you wait and see.

**Author's Note:**

> And we're off! I've decided to try and make this into a trilogy but I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Is there anything you guys want to see?


End file.
